Dhoni signs Rs 200 cr Endorsement deal

Team India captain MS Dhoni signed an endorsement and talent management deal worth nearly Rs 200 crore that took him past Sachin Tendulkar in the corporate contract sweepstakes.

Dhoni, the country’s most expensive sportsman, has snapped up a three-year deal with sports and talent management firms Rhiti Sports Management and Mindscapes One. The companies, through a joint venture, will manage Dhoni’s long list of endorsements and brand associations, corporate profile, patents and digital rights, images, visibility on social networking sites and merchandise. Rhiti Sports is headed by Arun Pandey, a confidant and business associate of Dhoni, while Mindscapes One is owned by Pratik Sen, who has been managing the cricketer’s endorsements for more than a year.